E-Financial
Letshego Acquires 100% Stake in FBN Microfinance Bank
Letshego Holdings Limited, a Gabarone-based financial inclusion focused group with consumer, micro lending and deposit-taking subsidiaries across Southern and East Africa, has acquired a 100% shareholding in FBN Microfinance Bank (FBN MFB).
The acquisition is from FBN MFB’s parent, FBN Holdings plc.
FBN Holdings plc is the oldest banking group in Nigeria, having been established in 1894, and is listed on the Nigeria Stock Exchange.
The acquisition of FBN MFB marks Letshego’s entry into West Africa, having successfully built a footprint in East and Southern Africa with 265,000 customers across nine countries.
This development brings Letshego’s footprint to ten countries, with a customer base of over 385,000; Nigeria, in particular, has been a key target market in Letshego’s diversification plans.
Speaking during to the press during official announcement of the acquisition, Chris Low, group managing director of Letshego, said that FBN MFB will rebrand to Letshego MFB in due course.
“As the leading indigenous BSE-company by market capitalisation and profitability, it is an exciting time for us at Letshego.
“This opportunity to enter the Nigerian market coincides with the expansion of our range of financially inclusive products and services. We believe Nigeria’s growth prospects in our targeted low-and-middle income, and MSE, customer segments have significant upside potential, and that, by bringing our skills to this market, we can further financial inclusion and improve lives across Nigeria. We look forward to being able to further improve lives across the continent through this development.”
He said that with over 80,000 depositors and over 10,000 MSE borrowing customers, the bank’s operations are directly aligned to Letshego’s financial inclusion agenda.
For its part, Letshego wants to bring expertise in payroll deduction lending in the public and private sector, as well as lending to micro and small enterprises, with a focus on agriculture, education and health sectors.
Letshego Holdings Limited is a Botswana International Financial Services Centre-accredited holding company with lending and deposit-taking subsidiaries across ten countries in Southern, East and West Africa.
FBN MFB was established in 2009 and is one of only six microfinance banks in Nigeria to have been awarded a national microfinance banking licence.
Currently, FBN MFB has 28 branches and over 300 team members. Its core business is lending, savings and transactional financial services to micro and small enterprises (MSEs).
According to Low, the Company is ready to drive financial inclusion in Nigeria as the Group is known for offering broad based financial inclusive, innovative and competitively priced solutions that include loans between $500 and $600, appropriate to its customers’ every day needs, mainly through the dedication at source payroll model.
Over the last decade and half, the Group has expanded across Africa from its origins in Botswana. At June 2015, advances increased 16% to $580million from $501million in the previous interim, with profit before tax for the same period closing at $52million, up 8% on the prior period.
Low said that Lesthego’s strategic intent is to build a leading African financial service group.
He added that the Group is poised to assis governments with their financial deepening and inclusion agendas.
“The Group continues to seek deposit-taking licences to help facilitate its financial inclusion approach. This includes providing financial services access via third party agents and mobile telephony, that is underway in Kenya, Mozambique, Rwanda and Tanzania,” he explained.
On social responsibility and sustainability plans, he said, these have become integral parts of Letshego’s business model that seeks to address social, environmental, ethical and consumer concerns in close co-operation with all Letshego stakeholders.
Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has urged youths to shun investment scams and embrace the habit of saving.
NDIC said that for a nation to be prosperous, its citizens must learn to build legitimate wealth through savings and then advance to investment.
Mr Adegbenga Fagbuyi, assistant director, Communication and Corporate Affairs, NDIC, made the remarks while addressing students of Lagelu Grammar School, Ibadan, during the 2026 Financial Literacy Day.
Delivering his speech on “Smart Money,” Fagbuyi highlighted the importance of having basic knowledge of the financial system, making sound financial decisions, understanding the benefits of saving in banks, setting financial goals, maintaining financial discipline, and avoiding Ponzi schemes that promise high returns.
Fagbuyi said youths are among the major targets of the government’s financial inclusion drive, adding that the Financial Literacy Day formed part of activities marking Global Money Week, adopted by the Bankers’ Committee in Nigeria as a platform for mentoring youths on savings and investment.
He said, “The government wants everybody to be participants in the financial sector. But how can you be a participant if you don’t know how to save? How can you be a participant if you cannot convert your savings into an investment? So, most importantly, youths are one of the major targets of the financial inclusion drive of the government.”
Fagbuyi described financial inclusion as bringing everybody into the financial safety net by encouraging participation in banking, insurance, pensions, and the capital market.
He stressed that the government does not want youths to become adults who lack knowledge of safe banking practices, insurance, and the capital market.
“Government does not want them to grow old, to become adults who do not know about savings, safe banking habits, insurance, and the capital market. That is why we go to schools to sensitise students to all these basic financial matters, particularly savings, so that our students can begin to learn to save, learn credible investment habits through which they can be making legitimate income.
“We also educate them about the deposit insurance system administered by NDIC. When you save in banks, the banks are supervised and regulated. And if eventually they fail, you will not lose your money. That is what NDIC does,” Fagbuyi said.
He revealed that the sensitisation programme, which started about 10 years ago and is organised by the Bankers’ Committee, comprising the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation, and all the deposit money banks in Nigeria, has been held across states nationwide.
He said, “Minimum, every year, we go to 10 states. And we normally sensitise 200 students in each school. So this year, that means we are targeting 2,000 students.”
Fagbuyi, however, said the objective of the programme is not to cover all schools across the country but to set a standard for state governments and schools to replicate.
“But I must emphasise that the objective is not to cover all schools. It is to set a standard for state governments and for schools to replicate. You agree with me that we cannot be everywhere.
“But as a partner, as a key stakeholder in the financial inclusion drive of the federal government, we go to states to showcase what the government’s intention, so that states and schools can replicate. So it is on this note that we always urge states’ Ministries of Education, Science and Technology to replicate and expand these programmes across their respective states.”
In his address, Olusegun Olayiwola, Oyo State Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, represented by Alhaji Lukuman Kareem, permanent secretary, Education Inspectorate, Ibadan North, commended the NDIC for selecting a school in Ibadan for the financial literacy sensitisation programme.
He noted that such initiatives must go beyond the classroom to shape young minds, adding that children cannot achieve expected outcomes unless they are properly guided.
“That’s why we significantly appreciate the efforts of the Bankers’ Committee, NDIC, the Central Bank of Nigeria, and all other members for this,” he said.
The commissioner charged the students to take the lessons seriously, noting that opportunities lost may not be easily regained. He also advised the NDIC to expand the programme to include students from neighbouring schools in future editions to maximise its impact without additional transportation costs.
Additionally, Olayiwola urged teachers to cascade the training to other students, who should in turn enlighten their siblings at home.
Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has set a July 31 deadline for all large taxpayers to wholly adopt the national e-invoicing and electronic fiscal system (EFS)- called digital exchange of structured invoice data between a supplier and a buyer.
This is sequel to a public notice issued by NRS on February 17, 2026 on the implementation timeline and the mandatory adoption of the national e-invoicing and EFS otherwise known as the Merchant Buyer Solution (MBS).
Zacch Adedeji, chairman, NRS, personally signed the public notice informing all large taxpayers of the need to complete the onboarding, integration, testing, and commencement of invoice transmission to the NRS e-invoicing platform in accordance with the prescribed implementation framework.
According to a statement issued on Sunday by Dare Adekanmbi, special adviser on Media to the chairman, “NRS has already commenced compliance monitoring activities in order to assess the level of adherence to the e-invoicing mandate among large taxpayers.
“Consequently, any defaulting member may be subjected to appropriate regulatory and enforcement actions in accordance with the provisions of the relevant tax laws and regulations.
“Affected taxpayers are, therefore, advised to urgently conclude all outstanding onboarding and integration activities and commence invoice transmission before the compliance deadline.
“The NRS appreciates the cooperation of taxpayers and remains committed to providing the necessary support to ensure the successful implementation of the national e-invoicing regime,” the notice said.
Large taxpayers are companies with gross turnover of N5 billion and above.
As of the first quarter of this year, over 1,000 companies had complied.
Compliance with the e-invoicing and Electronic Fiscal System covers the completion of onboarding on the NRS Merchant Buyer Solution (MBS) and successful integration of taxpayer systems through approved Access Point Providers (APPs) and/or systems Integrators (SIs).
Others are completion of all required validation and testing activities; active transmission of invoices to the NRS e-invoicing platform in line with approved standards and guidelines; and ensuring the receipt of only compliant e-invoices with valid Invoice Reference Number (RIN) from suppliers.
Access Holdings Plc has completed the sale of a 7.44% stake in its Ghanaian subsidiary, a move believe is tied to a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) rule capping how much local banks can hold in foreign units.
This was disclosed in a filing with the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) recently, which was obtained by our reporter over the weekend.
The corporate disclosure signed by the Company Secretary, Helen De Cardi Nelson, Access Bank (Ghana) Plc, stated that the outcome of the transaction reflects continued investor interest in Access Bank (Ghana) Plc and confidence in the long-term prospects of the Bank.
According to the release, the sale attracted strong participation from a well-diversified pool of investors, including pension funds, institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals.
Access Bank (Ghana) Plc, listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange, disclosed that its parent, Access Bank Plc, sold 12,085,318 ordinary shares representing 7.44% of the unit’s issued shares on July 15, 2026.
The sale went through the Ghana Stock Exchange with regulatory clearance, including a no-objection from the Bank of Ghana.
Buyers included pension funds, institutional investors, and high-net-worth individuals. IC Securities (Ghana) Ltd acted as adviser and executing broker.
Commenting on the deal, Managing Director of Access Bank (Ghana), Ms. Pearl Nkrumah, said the transaction deepens local ownership and liquidity in the bank’s shares, and keeps management focused on turning its scale into value for stakeholders.
Before the sale, Access Bank Plc held 93.40% of Access Bank Ghana, with the remaining 6.60% already in the hands of other shareholders from the unit’s GSE listing.
Stake sold: 7.44%; Estimated holding after the sale: 85.96%; Public and other investors: approximately 14.04%
Access Holdings therefore retains firm majority control of its Ghanaian unit; this is a partial dilution, not an exit.
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